14/09/2026
Warning: Dodgy Work On Show!!
These are spotlight connections we removed from a local building last week. (If your spotlights look anything like this when they are taken out of the ceiling, call in a professional!) This work is around 6 years old.
What you’re looking at was hidden above the ceiling. Multiple cables and connections crammed together, with connections left hanging loose rather than properly enclosed and supported. This is a FAIL during an EICR (Electrical Installation Condition Report)
It may have saved a few pounds on junction boxes, suitable cable and installation time when the job was originally carried out, but what did that saving really achieve?
Six years later, the customer has had to pay again for the installation to be put right after the other ‘Electrician’ is no longer answering his phone! More importantly, poor electrical connections like this can and do overheat, creating a serious fire risk long before anybody knows there is a problem.
Most of a properties electrical work is hidden out of sight, so you’re putting your trust in the person carrying out the work to use the right materials, make the right connections and take the time to do it properly. You may not know about the corners that have been cut until years later when something goes wrong.
And just like with almost every other trade or profession, there are levels to it. Two people can both call themselves electricians, but that doesn’t necessarily mean you’re getting the same standard of workmanship, knowledge, attention to detail or quality of installation.
We removed the substandard connections on this job and replaced them with the correct junction boxes and 3 core flexible cable to each spotlight terminal box, giving the customer a safe and professional installation.
When it comes to electrical work, the things being left out could be the very things designed to keep your property, and the people inside it safe.
Saving money on the original quote is not a saving if you later have to pay another electrician to take it apart and do the job properly. Choose your electrical contractor on quality and competence NOT just PRICE…!
